


No Such Thing As Coincidence

by TheSecretMistress



Series: It’s My World Now [1]
Category: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity
Genre: Blood, Dimension Travel, Friendship, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pokéhuman AU, Unrequited Crush, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-02 15:49:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18814054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSecretMistress/pseuds/TheSecretMistress
Summary: He went to bed expecting nothing out of the ordinary in his dreams. He fell asleep believing he would wake up in his room the next morning. He slept with no inkling of how his life was going to change thanks to one strange dream.Except that weird dream turned out to be reality.





	1. Prologue

Darkness…

That’s the first thing he became aware of.

An endless pool of black threatening to drag him to its depths.

But then, brilliant colors of light flooded his senses and chased away the darkness. Confused and feeling oh so alone, he tried to move only to find out that he couldn’t. Panic made his heart beat rapidly in his chest as he tried to get a sense of what on earth was going on with and around him. Is he dreaming? It didn’t feel like a normal dream. But what can be classified as a normal dream? Hopefully not this.

...Oh! He could see a light pulsing in the center of all that brightness. It reminds him of a heartbeat. He could see the pulsing die down, but not before he heard something. Or, at least, he thought he heard something. It was so faint and he’s so confused and bewildered by everything that his senses just might be playing tricks on him. However, he felt like he was being… called to. And that is very strange.

**_You…_ **

He heard it at that time for sure! He’s not alone!

**_You who can now hear my voice…_ **

Yes, strange voice?

**_Might you be…_ **

**_...a human?_ **

...What else would he be? This dream is getting weirder and weirder by the second.

**_If you are, then please…_ **

**_Listen to my plea._ **

**_I want you to save the Pokémon world._ **

Did he hear that correctly? The Pokémon world? But… Pokémon doesn’t exist! They’re just a video games series that’s mighty popular with children! Jeez, what on earth did he have before going to sleep? It’s giving him extremely weird dreams about something he’s not even interested in. Pokémon is more in his little brother’s field. Let him dream about those overloved pocket monsters!

**_We need your…_ **

He would’ve jumped in alarm if he could thank to how the voice suddenly cut off. The pulse of light quivered as if it struggled to maintain itself.  Is the dream about to end? Disappointment flooded him at that thought because, while it is sort of creepy, it’s an interesting dream. Usually, his dreams aren’t this vivid and he believes he won’t forget it once he wakes-

**_HELP!!!_ **

He nearly shrieked at that. His worry has now intensified thanks to the scream and the lights turning an ominous purple. They sounded so fearful and desperate and he’s sure that scream will haunt any future dreams of his. He’s never heard anyone scream like that. He knew this to be nothing more than a dream turning into a nightmare, but he felt himself praying that the person the voice belongs to is alright.

Suddenly, his vision is flooded by a different scene. Surprised, he can see that he’s in some sort of cave judging by the rocky, dark surroundings. He is even more surprised by the fact that he’s viewing this all from above. He’s not that tall and he can’t even feel if his feet are on the ground or not. Makes him feel like some sort of ghost or something.

His gaze snapped to the only other bright color here and was shocked to see a young girl frantically… floating? Is he seeing right? It didn’t help that the floating girl has lemonade pink wavy shoulder-length hair and watermelon pink eyes. She has two small purple flowers with pink middles on opposite sides of her head and something that resembled an oval pink gem on her forehead. Her spaghetti strap pink dress only reached the middle of her pale thighs with an underlayer of purple with a line pattern of little pink flowers. He couldn’t see her feet thanks to the pale pink-purple mist that surrounded her legs. This girl, whoever she is, did not look like anyone he has ever seen before. And she looked very fearful about how she constantly craned her neck to look behind her. As if she’s the little red riding hood being chased by the big bad wolf.

That statement doesn’t at all fit since the person who appeared near where the girl first floated from in the tunnel is most certainly _not_ the big bad wolf. Rather, he’s a terrifying dragon who’s come to capture the dainty princess. The man looked to easily be over six feet tall with spiky long fuchsia hair that reached his waist and equally fuchsia eyes. What appeared to be six thin, black wings that all ended in two points jutted out of his back. He was wearing a low cut sleeveless blue shirt that exposed some of his chest and the bottom ended in what he can only assume is purposeful tears. His black pants ended in the middle of his calves and he’s wearing blue flats with a purple leg warmer on his left leg. Black detached sleeves started just above his elbows and ended up flowing over his palms with torn edges. Blue cloth pressed against the back of the man’s hands and vanished up the sleeves that have purple insides. The man also had a long blue tail with purple underneath and ended in a black tuft.

Oh, and there was also a terrifying glare and snarl on the man’s face.

He watched in horror, his heart pounding in his chest, as the dragon-like man swiftly caught up with the scared young girl. He wanted nothing more than to jump in and save the teary-eyed girl, but his weightless body refused to move. He couldn’t so much as _twitch_ and that filled him with helplessness. It didn’t help that she looked to be the same age as his little brother. He always protected his brother against any snotty bullies that tried anything even if that got him into trouble later. He wants his brother to know that he can rely on him for anything.

Every second seemed to take hours to pass. The animalistic roar that came from the man chilled him to the bone. The floating girl screamed as her pursuer reared back, sharp canines snapping, and lunged. The ascending tunnel vanished from his sight right before the man made contact with the girl. He felt sick to his stomach at what could’ve happened afterward. If the man was successful in whatever malicious thing he had planned for the terrified young girl. Please let her be alright!

He could now see the same colored lights from before. The shimmering lights managed to calm his heartbeat down so he wouldn’t feel like he just ran a marathon without any breaks. But the lights did nothing to ease his concern for the girl. Fortunately, he has something else to focus on. There is now a reflection in the colorful lights and it took him a few seconds to realize that it’s his reflection. His untamable mane of red hair and ghostly pale freckled face are very noticeable, after all.

Surprise curled up inside him when his reflection suddenly wavered and shifted. An odd feeling came over his body at the exact moment and numbness spread throughout his body. Worried and starting to panic again, he tried desperately to move something. Anything. But the numbness remained strong. He is forced to rely on his reflection to see what’s happening to his body. And, to his horror, he changed.

No longer is he an adult with wild flames for hair and unfortunate height. His horror is now reflected in now chocolate brown eyes belonging to a prepubescent boy whose facial features are somewhat similar to his own as a child. And yet foreign to him at the same time. He gulped and tried to shift closer to see more of himself and, to his surprise, his feet soundlessly moved him closer. He hesitantly peered down at his reflection in the blueness that resembled a pool of water and winced at what he saw.

His new form looked to be around twelve years old and his skin isn’t as pale as before. It instead has more of a tan to it which sort of made him happy. God knows just how much he has tried to tan instead of just burning. His hair is now a leaf green color with long bangs and the rest of it tied into a low ponytail that somehow defied gravity by sharply curling to the left and slightly in front of him. He now has on a chartreuse green short-sleeved turtleneck with a green sleeveless jacket on that managed to reach his knees. Honestly, it looked kind of like one of those vest-jacket thingies. The fronts had a light, somewhat thick string looped around both yellow circle buttons on the chest area and those buttons have sturdy yellow cloth curled over his shoulders and ending in light red, like a sunset. He’s wearing simple dark green pants and bark brown boots that are actually quite comfortable despite looking oversized.

To sum it all up, he looks exactly the opposite of how he’s supposed to look like.

Wait… is that a _tail_ ?! His brown eyes widened as he swiftly turned around so his back is visible in the reflection. He snapped his head to the side to look down at him and nearly fainted right there out of shock. He has a _tail_ ! A tail! It looks odd with its end that looks like the head of a tulip drawn by a child. He yelped as his new green appendage twitched and he can _feel_ it move. He wants to wake up now! He really does!

He spun around when a small light began to shine in the middle of the blue. Curious, yet still shaken up by his new appearance, he edged closer to the light to examine it. Perhaps this light will finally get him to wake up from this strangeness. Only when he got closer did he have a sudden feeling that the voice he heard came from the light’s spot. Now much more interested, he stepped even more closely to see if he might be able to hear the voice again. Hear some answers while the dream still has its grasp on him.

He froze when his surroundings suddenly darkened, all of the color fading away. Is something bad about to happen? He didn’t know if he could take any more of this. Especially with how uneasy it makes him feel to have his sudden tail anxiously moving side to side!

His eyes widened when a tower of golden light appeared around him without warning. His gaze shot downward and he just about cried when he saw three light blue rings appear around him like this is some sort of messed up magic circle. Why does he have such weird dreams?! Why couldn’t he have dreamed about bunnies eating cupcakes?! Anything is better than this stupid stressful thing!

A shriek tore itself from his throat and, barely noticing how young he sounds, screwed his eyes shut when the light became even more intense. And then, something even more terrifying happened. Something so bad that it nearly made his heart stop.

The ground disappeared from beneath him.

His eyes flew wide open in panic and he saw the earth way below him. Falling from the sky is about as scary as can be, especially since he has no parachute. At least this meant he’ll wake up soon! He’s heard of dreams where people are falling through the bright blue sky and then waking up right before they hit the ground. It brought him comfort to know that this nightmare will finally be past him.

Didn’t stop him from screaming again as the earth came closer and closer though.


	2. First Encounter

_ Owww _ … His whole body  _ hurts  _ and he doesn’t like it one bit. His mind is spinning and his body aches like one giant bruise. What did he do to feel like this? He doesn’t remember getting into a fight yesterday. And there’s no weight on him so his little brother didn’t jump onto him to wake him up. Strange.

“H-hey!”

He tensed at the unfamiliar young voice that rang out near him. The person, a young boy probably, sounds incredibly worried and a little panicked, but that doesn’t explain who he is and what he’s doing in his shared apartment. Did his brother bring a friend over or something? He  _ knows  _ he’s supposed to ask for permission before doing something like that!

“Are you OK?!”

...Why wouldn’t he be?

“Come on, wake up… Come on!”

A sinking feeling enveloped him and he hurriedly opened his eyes only to snap them shut again. The light is so  _ bright _ ! He slowly opened his eyes to adjust to the lighting and he focused on the strange blurry figure hovering over him in worry. He blinked his eyes a few more times to get a clearer look at the young boy only to suck in a breath.

The boy, who looked to be about twelve, has normal black hair with the back seemingly styled in a way that reminds him of a duck’s butt, long bangs, ruby red eyes, a olive green short-sleeved hoodie, a lime green short underneath with longer sleeves, dark seaweed green shorts that end just below the knees, and seaweed green sandals with olive straps. The whole outfit complimented the boy’s dark skin and all seemed normal about him except for the two small, pale horns sticking out from the opposite sides of the boy’s cheeks and close to his lips.

...What?

“Hey! You’re awake!” The boy gasped when he noticed that he is indeed awake and staring in shock at him. He eventually managed to tear his gaze away from the boy’s horns -  _ tusks?  _ \- and slowly sat up. That’s when he felt something move, looked behind him and noticed the  _ tail  _ attached to him. Memories of that strange dream came back to him and he nearly cried right there and then. This couldn’t also be a dream with how sore his whole body is so this must be reality. His unfortunate reality where he’s now in the body of some boy with a friggin’  _ tail _ .

“You OK?!” The boy worriedly asked, no doubt noticing that he’s upset. He gave a quick nod of his head and shakily started to stand up, feeling completely off balance thanks to his new height. He didn’t have it in him to shake off the boy’s hand when he felt it wrap around his elbow to help him up. He felt gratitude towards the boy with the shock at his horns fading away. Horns are no stranger than his tail.

“Thank you,” he replied once he was steady on his own two feet and had slowly breathed out to calm himself down. The hand didn’t move away though. He shifted his feet on the barely grassy ground after a few heartbeats passed with the other’s hand still on his elbow. The boy seemed to be studying him with a concern gleam in his red eyes as if he expected him to just topple over any second now. Finally, with a nod of satisfaction, the boy let go of him and took a small step back.

“You’re welcome, but… You sure you aren’t hurt or anything? Does it hurt anywhere? Can you hear me?” The boy’s hand twitched as if he itched to just check him over for any injuries that he might’ve hidden. Not that he has any. He didn’t feel wounded in the slightest and, after looking himself over, didn’t appear to be bleeding anywhere. He just felt  _ really  _ sore.

“I’m fine and I can hear you just fine,” he answered.

“...Really?” The boy stared at him for a moment longer before his lips stretched into a wide grin. “Whew, that’s a relief!” The boy is obviously pleased that he’s unharmed and he’s surprised by that. They don’t even know each other. Why on earth is he so happy? Feeling uncomfortable at the display of happiness, his gaze turned elsewhere which led him to stare at the thick green lump of a tail wagging behind the horned boy.

At least he’s not the only one with a tail. That’s good.

“You know you fell straight out of the sky, right?”

“Don’t remind me,” he grimaced at the reminder. He turned his gaze up at the blue sky and wondered just why this is happening to him. And who’s looking after his little brother? He’s not there to take care of him! He doesn’t know how long he’ll be in this world and it fills him with coldness to know that his brother will be without him for days, weeks, perhaps even  _ months _ . All thanks to that voice and mysterious light.

“Hey, it’ll be OK,” the boy softly said. He tore his gaze away from the sky and its innocently passing clouds to look at the boy again. There’s a softness in his red eyes that instantly made him on edge. Strangers shouldn’t go around offering comfort to others. That’s just not how the world is supposed to work. People are supposed to mind their own business!

“You’re lucky enough to have not a single scratch after falling all that way, right? Your luck will help you out in the long run.”

Scratches, no. Bruises, yes.

“I’m Axew, by the way,” the boy introduced himself. “What about you? What’s your name?”

“Oh, I’m Rowan,” he answered after a pause. Axew? He’s never heard of a name like that before. Then again, that voice did say something about the Pokémon world and this is obviously the Pokémon world. He mentally cursed himself for not paying more attention to his little brother whenever he went on and on about those video games he adores so much. Would’ve prepared him for this world. But, aren’t Pokémon  _ not  _ humanoid?

“Rowan? Your name’s Rowan, huh?” The strange boy named Axew owlishly blinked before grinning widely at him. “Well, nice to meet you!”

“Uh, nice to meet you too…?” He blinked. Honestly, the situation could’ve been better. And he still can’t figure out why Axew is being so nice to him. Does he want something from him? Maybe he wants to know why he fell out of the sky? It’s not exactly a common occurrence in his own world, however, he doesn’t know if it’s not uncommon here. But, the black-haired boy seemed genuine in his concern so it can’t be  _ that  _ common…

“But…”

He cocked his head to the side in question.

“Where’d you come from, Rowan?” Axew asked with puzzlement shining in his eyes. He raised a brow and pointedly looked up at the sky. “Well, I mean, I know you came from the sky just now…” He hurriedly clarified with what he assumed to be a blush on his cheeks. But, it’s hard to tell with how dark Axew’s skin is. “But I haven’t seen you around before. And Rowan is kinda a weird name.”

“Thanks,” he dryly said.

“N-not that there’s anything wrong with Rowan as a name!” Axew brought him amusement with how he tried to backtrack in order to not offend him. “I’m just wondering where your home is! Of course, I’m curious about  _ why  _ you fell out of the sky, b-but that wasn’t where I was going with that question!”

He decided to have mercy on the poor, flustered boy. “I’m from Clefmond. It’s, uh, very far away…” He nervously smiled at the last part. He couldn’t exactly say that he’s not from this world or that he doesn’t actually look like this. Who’d believe him? They’d probably lock him up and declare him insane. Well, insane as can be in a world full of not-Pokémon.

“Clefmond?” Axew scratched his cheek in thought. “Wow, must be really far away then. Never heard of it.” That didn’t surprise him. “Anyway, where ya headed?” Now  _ that  _ threw him for a loop. He has no clue where he should go or where in the world he is. The only thing he has to go off of is that vision he saw. He  _ must  _ find the floating girl, most likely save her from that dragon man, and figure out why he was chosen and not someone else who actually knows about Pokémon stuff! But, where to begin?

“...I’m lost,” he quickly blurted out when no other idea popped into mind. “Do you mind if… I tag along for a bit? Till I know where to go, of course.” He fidgeted under Axew’s surprised stare at his request. Usually, he’d be too cautious and uncomfortable to rely on others, but he has no other option if he wants to find answers as swiftly as possible. He’s still a bit wary of the boy’s kindness though. He knows that there are those who are actually this nice and he’s praying that Axew’s concern for him over the fall and happiness at making his acquaintance is for real and not an act.

“I’d love that!” Axew clapped his hands together with a huge grin. “We can meet mythical Pokémon that no one else has ever seen! We can explore ancient ruins and deep caves! We can go on the most fantastic adventures ever! I always wanted to be an adventurer! It’s a good thing I traveled all the way here or else we wouldn’t have-”

Axew’s excited rambling stopped as his eyes went wide with a loud gasp. He felt confused at the sudden shift of emotions from happiness and excitement to frantic worry. He was actually bemused at Axew’s reaction to his request and was sad to see that enthusiasm go. Did the boy forget something important?

“Argh! I forgot!”

Yup, he did.

“The most important meeting of my life!”

“What meeting?” He curiously asked. It must be very important if it made Axew panic like this. Sadly, his question went unanswered as Axew bolted down the thin dirt path and into some woods while screaming, “I’ve got to get there ASAP! C’mon Rowan!” The boy didn’t even slow down to see if he was following or not!

He breathed out a sigh at the boy’s impatience to get to wherever he’s going and decided to run after him. It wouldn’t be good to lose his guide within minutes, after all. Besides, he knows how important meetings are and it wouldn’t do to be late. First impressions always matter no matter what it’s about and which world it’s in. He’d hate to make enemies so soon after his arrival just because of being tardy.

~~~

He breathed out a sigh of relief when they finally came to a stop. The area they’re now in is more rocky with waterfalls and cliffs to their left. The beauty of nature did not escape him, but he dwelled more on the fact that it appeared that his stamina has increased. Usually, he’d be exhausted after running that far, but he only felt slightly out of breath. New body perk? Maybe.

“This way, Rowan!” He looked over at the boy who stood in the middle of a simple wooden bridge across one of the rivers created by a waterfall. “Come on! Hurry!”

“No need to get so excited, Axew!” He called back. He quickened his steps since he’s used to being hurried along and knew that talking wouldn’t help the issue. His little brother is far more impatient though.  _ And  _ he wouldn’t wait up for him. At least Axew slowed down a bit even if it’s still clear that he’s in a major rush.

“I can’t be late though!” Axew responded with a hint of panic.

“You won’t be so just calm down,” he advised. Axew gave a small nod as they stepped off the wide bridge. He trailed behind the boy as he examined the large rocky wall to their left. It looked like a bunch of boulders decided to pile up on each other or something. He’s never seen anything like it before because he and his little brother live in a bustling city. He wonders if this world has anything similar to his own.

“Huh?!”

He directed his gaze back to Axew at his dismayed cry and felt his eyes widen. The stone bridge that they were no doubt supposed to cross has collapsed thanks to a landslide. Or should he call it a rockslide? Piles of rocks larger than himself lay beneath the broken bridge that is in no condition to cross. Judging by the boy’s reaction, this was their only way to get to their destination that he still has no clue about.

“The bridge has collapsed!” Axew looked back at him in obvious panic. “What do we do?!” The boy, obviously alarmed by this turn of events, started to fidget where he stood as his gaze darted back to the stone bridge. He, feeling much like the only adult… oh right, he is the only adult here. Anyway, he kept his calm and looked around at their surroundings for an answer to this dilemma.

His brown gaze rested on a fallen tree propped up against some boulders and saw a path leading away. He walked over to stand in the path’s entranceway and saw a tunnel leading into the cliff wall. “Hey, Axew,” he called over to the nervous boy. “Will this go the way you want to go?” He did see that there are some places on the cliff wall, like balconies, that they can probably be able to go to.

The boy all but ran over to where he stood and visibly relaxed when he saw the tunnel. “Yeah, we can go this way,” Axew smiled gratefully. “Thanks for pointing it out!” He stumbled forward in surprise at the sudden clap on his shoulder. Wow, the boy is stronger than he appears. He absently rubbed his shoulder as Axew headed for the tunnel’s mouth before pausing.

“Let’s go!” The boy urged him along and soon they left behind the outside in favor of the dimly lit cave system. Well, actually, the cave is surprisingly lit for a cave and he has no trouble seeing in it. And the whole place is much larger than he originally thought it would be. He had initially thought that it’d just be a series of tunnels to go through, but the place actually had openings connected by extremely thin tunnels.

He grimaced as he slowly walked down the tunnel he and Axew currently occupied. The boy is behind him and much more alert than he was outside. That kind of alertness put him on edge and he soon found himself all tense and watching for anything that could be a threat. This is really making him paranoid and he doesn’t like it  _ at all _ .

Fortunately, he didn’t have to stay in the suffocating tunnel any longer. He eagerly stepped into another cave opening, however, he came face to face with a maliciously grinning little girl. He froze as his shocked gaze took her in. Physically younger than his current form, the girl has her short black hair pulled into a tight tuft of a ponytail, two white bows on opposite sides of said ponytail, and a white bow at her collar. Her black and white dress reached her knees which allowed him to see her light purple tights and black Mary Janes with white bows.

And it’s clear that this little girl has no intention of letting him and Axew pass.

Annoyed, he glared at the girl in hope of scaring her away. She flinched from his Leer but stood her ground. In fact, her blue eyes seemed to harden even more in malice. Unfortunately, he was not at all prepared for what the little girl did next. How could he? He would’ve expected something like  _ that  _ from teenage bullies and furious adults. Not little girls in dresses.

He was completely surprised when the little girl proceeded to kick him with surprising strength. He hissed at the Pound and stumbled back from the force. Luckily for him, Axew’s hands suddenly appearing on his shoulders preventing him from making nice with the cave floor. He heard the boy draw in a deep breath but ignored him. All of his attention is on the little girl who is  _ so  _ going to get it!

He straightened up, pulling away from Axew’s support, and was just about to  _ lunge  _ when something completely unexpected happened.

He felt his shoulders tingle with an odd sensation right before two streaks of green flashes out and  _ whipped  _ the little girl. Whatever just happened, it seemed to do the trick with how the little girl cried out and ran away covered in cuts from head to toe. Meanwhile, he’s still staring in shock at the two  _ vines  _ retreating back to his shoulder and under his sleeves. The same sensation came over him and he could only assume that the… vines went away.

...What just happened?

“Cool!”Axew gasped in admiration from behind him. “Your Vine Whip is very powerful to get that Gothita running in one shot! Glad to know you can watch my back!” He still felt like a statue when the boy squeezed past him with a huge grin and merrily went on his way. “Be on the lookout though! Pokémon here aren’t too friendly!”

He numbly went to follow Axew with his mind still reeling from what just happened.

This world is getting crazier and crazier by the second.

~~~

Nearly ten minutes later, they finally managed to get to the plateau overseeing the path below. They encountered some more of those malicious Pokémon and he, somehow, managed to convince himself that he’s totally fine with those weird vines coming out of his shoulders to whip at their attackers. He’s used to fights so it was easy for him to send their opponents running with Axew’s help. Surprisingly, the boy is also adept at fighting and also did some weird stuff that left him staring at him in shock.

He also picked up a strange berry off the cave floor. Axew seemed happy to have it and gave it to him to hold onto it. The boy, sheepishly, admitted that he loses things easily. He had no clue what this “Oran Berry” did, but it must do something good with how pleased Axew was to have found it. Hopefully, he’ll be able to find some books or something to familiarize himself with this world so he won’t look like an idiot.

“Look!”

“Hey! Wait!” He protested when Axew ran off towards a standing tree near the edge of the plateau. Huffing, he followed the excited boy who’s circling the dead tree. Jeez, this boy runs off whenever he wants. He’ll have to keep a close eye on him in the future so he won’t just turn around and  _ poof _ ! He’s alone. The idea of running away and trying to find Axew is not appealing at all.

“We can use this to cross!” Axew declared. He inched towards the edge, peered over to see the drop, looked at the other side, and finally looked at the tree. “It… could work,” he agreed. They’ll have to be careful though. It’d be a shame if they tip the tree over in a way that it just falls down instead of becoming a makeshift bridge. Now, how to go about it…?

“Yup! Stand back!”

“What-?!”

He jumped back with a yelp when Axew suddenly reared back and  _ slammed  _ his shoulder into the tree. “What are you-?!” He cut himself off with a gasp when the tree perfectly toppled over from the heavy force and the tip landed on the other plateau. He gaped like a fish out of the water as Axew just jumped onto the tree and started to cross as if this was just a normal day to him. Nothing out of the extraordinary having just taken place.

Which it probably was. He doesn’t know much about Axew, after all.

“Rowan? What’re you waiting for?” Axew looked back at him in confusion once he reached the other side and saw him still standing over there to his surprise. “Er, nothing,” he shook his head at the display. “Gimme a sec.” He slowly climbed onto the tree and started to make his way across. Fortunately for him, his balance has always been pretty good and that hasn’t changed.

He gladly accepted Axew’s offered hand once he made it to the other side of the fallen tree. With the boy’s help, he stepped off the dead tree without losing his footing. “Alright, let’s go on,” he nodded towards where the entrance to another cave laid nearby. “Up for it?”

Axew’s eager grin is answer enough.

~~~

“All right! We finally made it to the other side!” Axew cheerfully exclaimed once they exited the cave on the ground level. He hummed in agreement as he shoved the two Oran Berries he picked up into his pocket with the first one. Getting through the cave was easier than the first one because he had time to adjust to actually having to fight his way through. Still freaks him out a little though. But, it’s manageable and it sorta interests him.

“Where do we go now?” He questioned.

“Over there!” Axew pointed towards the wooden bridge over on their left that led across another river. “We’re almost there now! Let’s give it our all!”

“OK,” he just shrugged. He’s never been the one absolutely bursting with energy like some people, Axew being one of them, he knows. He tends to go about things more… calmly. Unless he’s worked up by something he’s really passionate about or it involves beating some kids up for picking on his little brother. His temper can flare easily when rightly provoked.

He and Axew went around the line of rocks, across the wooden bridge, and down the path. He ended up having to hurry along, even more, when Axew picked up the pace. The closer they got, the more excited the boy became. The panic has completely faded away at this point in their journey which is a good thing. He, after seeing Axew all smiles and bouncy, doesn’t like it when the boy is stressed.

After about a walk of twenty minutes, they came across a crossroad where the path breaks off into threes. One continues along straight ahead, another goes to their left, and the last one goes to their right. A little fountain laid next to the right path and three pointed signs laid next to the left path.

“Ha… We did it!” Axew pumped his fists into the air with cheer. “We’re finally here!”

“Where exactly is here?” He looked around them and saw no one else nearby. This doesn’t exactly look like a perfect spot for a meeting, whatever it may be.

“Where my meeting is!”

Very helpful, Axew.

“C’mon! We gotta hurry!” Axew started down the right path with an eager bounce in his steps. More hurrying? But he thought Axew just said they're finally here! Sighing, he resigned himself to his fate of trailing behind Axew once again to who knows where. At least Axew knows where he’s go-

“I’m pretty sure the letter said it was this way…”

He lost confidence in the boy when he heard him mutter that under his breath. Great. They could be totally lost and neither of them would know any different. He shook his head as they ventured deeper into very empty, rocky land. The whole area seemed to be barren with little plant life growing, but it does have large orangish boulders. Why would there be a meeting out here? Frowning, he looked towards Axew to ask him if they’re really supposed to be here but closed his mouth.

“Th-thank goodness… You’re still here… Phew...”

A plump, middle-aged man stood waiting just across a short wooden bridge with a patient smile on his face. His midnight blue hair, which nearly touched the ground, appeared to be neatly tied into a casual ponytail with divided sections. He’s wearing a light blue yukata-like outfit with light purples and whites around his waist and near the edges of his very long sleeves. You couldn’t even see his hands! The puffy pants ended around his ankles to show white socks and blue flats. And, like him and Axew, the man also bore a tail sort of like a beaver’s. Just blue.

“Hmm? I’m Quagsire, hmm?” The man’s dark gaze shifted between him and Axew as they stepped across the bridge. “I’m the one who, mmm, manages the land around here?”

Oh? The land?

“Is it you then, hmm?” The man, Quagsire, turned towards Axew with a serene smile. “You’re, mmm, Axew?” While his speech pattern is…  _ unique _ … he didn’t seem bad. He liked the soothing aura around the man. And it seemed that he knows Axew, but not quite if he doesn’t know what Axew looks like. Axew did say something about a letter though.

“Yup, That’s me,” Axew nodded with barely contained excitement for whatever is about to happen. He gave the boy a puzzled look before looking back at Quagsire whose smile became more pleasant.

“Mm-hmm! I thought so! Thanks for coming so far, hmm?” Quagsire dipped his head in gratitude towards Axew. “It seems that waiting here was, hmm, worth it after all.”

“Waiting for what?” He butted in once the curiosity became too much. “What’s this about?”

“Hmm? Is this, mmm, your friend?”

“Yup!” He is startled by how easily and quickly Axew agreed to Quagsire’s question. They only knew each other for less than an hour! That’s surely not enough to become friends. “This is Rowan!” Axew nudged him half a step forward in the introduction. “He’s gonna be my adventuring partner for a while!” Is he?

Ignoring his disbelieving stare, Axew continued to happily beam at Quagsire. He nodded his head a few times before turning around to survey the barren land all around them. “Hmm… Are you really sure about this? It’s really, mmm, desolate. And there’s nothing here…”

Yes, they can see that all too well.

“And worst of all, the Mystery Dungeons are really taking over in this area, hmm?”

...He’s sorry, what? Mystery Dungeons?

“You can’t count on anything going as expected in this kind of place, hmm?” Quagsire continued while he struggled to not ask about Mystery Dungeons. It seemed to be common knowledge with how Axew just nodded and chirped, “I know!” He  _ really  _ needs to find something like a manual for this whole world. The ignorance is killing him.

“That’s exactly what I’m hoping for, in fact. I brought the Poké with me.”

Puzzled by the unfamiliar term, he watched as Axew dug around in his pocket before taking out a medium-sized coin pouch. Is Poké the currency in this world or something? Quagsire steadily gazed at the offered pouch before meeting Axew’s gaze. “Hmm. You’re sure you won’t regret this?” Axew grinned and nodded. “Then here you go. Your hmm, deed.”

...Oh! So that’s what the meeting is for! Axew is buying this land from Quagsire! He watched in amazement as Axew traded the coin pouch for a rolled up piece of paper with a ribbon tied around it. It’s impressive that someone so young is able to buy land without an adult around. He  _ did  _ hear that the Pokémon trainers in those games are always ten years old though. Guess that plays a role in this.

“This land now belongs to you, hmm?” Quagsire chuckled at how Axew stared at the deed in awe. “You can, mmm, do whatever you’d like with it.” Quagsire casually walked in the direction they came from after some goodbyes. He stared at the retreating back for a few heartbeats before nearly having a heart attack when Axew suddenly cheered.

“Yeah! All riiiiiiight!!!” Axew screamed towards the sky as he threw his arms out and jumped around. He yelped as he was pulled into Axew’s celebration by a pair of eager hands and swiftly adjusted himself so they wouldn’t topple over. “From this day forth… this is gonna be our Paradiiiiiise!”

Axew’s enthusiasm ended up being contagious with how he soon found himself smiling and laughing along. Paradise, huh? Usually, he’d have his suspicions about such places, especially since his little brother is nowhere near here. His trust is very hard to earn, however, he felt it alright to have a  _ little  _ faith in the ball of energy known as Axew.

For the first time since falling through the sky, he believed that everything might just work out in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the first chapter!  
> Axew makes his first appearance~  
> I hope you enjoyed this one!


	3. Post Town

He’s decided.

Camping outside without any supplies is  _ terrible _ .

He barely managed to sleep in the makeshift nest he managed to get together and the cold air chilled him to his very bones. At least he wasn’t the only one upset with their circumstance with how Axew declared that they’ll talk about building a house in the morning. He’s not too sure how that’ll work out since it’d probably take weeks or even  _ months  _ to have their very own house built. He didn’t think he could take that many chilly nights. Granted, the starry night was breathtaking, but he’d much prefer to view it through a window!

Now, still exhausted from that horrid night, he’s trying to wrap his head around the fact that Axew has no clothes other than the ones he’s currently wearing. He himself only has the clothes on his back, but that’s because of his sudden appearance in this world. He would’ve expected someone who knew they were gonna do a lot of traveling to pack some spares! And Axew is looking at him with this completely innocent expression that makes him unable to get irritated.

“...Fine,” he rubbed his forehead, feeling an incoming headache. “I’ll see about our wardrobe in a nearby town or something. Try not to get too dirty in the meantime.”

“OK!” Axew obediently chirped. It almost hurt his eyes to look at the brightly smiling boy across from him. They are still seated in the nests they made since they only woke up a few minutes ago. The conversation about clothes took place when he had asked Axew for any clean shirts and pants he could borrow. Fortunately, they can go this day without a fresh change because they’re not that dirty despite having to fight a few times the day before.

He’ll have to get Axew to wash in the small river nearby though.

He turned his head when he heard approaching footsteps and spotted Quagsire humming as he walked towards them. He swiftly rose to his feet and brushed off the straw from his outfit to at least look presentable to the man Axew bought this property from. Axew didn’t seem to care about looking good with how he just jumped to his feet with a huge grin and didn’t even bother to preen. He has a sneaking suspicion that he’ll end up being the one making sure they’re all good to go before leaving in future mornings.

Well, what did he expect? Axew isn’t like him. He’s still just a boy and doesn’t have the mental maturity he does. Or, the experience in caring for someone other than himself.

“Mmm, morning,” Quagsire greeted. “I came to see how you two were surviving, hmm? Did you sleep well last night, hmm?”

“No,” he bluntly replied. “We couldn’t keep out the cold or the wind.”

“I, hmm, thought so.”

“That’s why we’re thinking of building our own house!” Axew excitedly said before deflating a little. “But we have no clue where to start…”

He grimaced because they really did have no clue. They’d have to get someone else to construct their house because neither of them has any experience in building. He never had to worry about that in his own world. There are construction crews for that very reason! He just hopes that there’s something like that in this world. Otherwise, they’re doomed.

“Hmm! Well, if it’s a house you’re after- -!” He blinked in surprise at how Quagsire instantly perked up. He’s also interested in what the man has to say about their house. Oh, please have a solution for them! Pretty please! “I think there should be a carpenter or three somewhere in Post Town, hmm?”

Their prayer has been answered!

“Huh? Really?!” Axew practically  _ glowed  _ in happiness with his stumpy tail in full wag mode. He has to admit that he’s also pretty happy and his tail is also swaying back and forth. Luckily for him, it doesn’t freak him out anymore. It’s weird how quickly he got used to an appendage he shouldn’t have, but he’s not complaining. It’d ruin his mood if he constantly tripped over himself because of his tail.

“If you ask them, they should be able to build you a house, hmm?”

“Thanks for telling us this. It means a lot to us,” he thanked with a small smile. “Where’s Post Town though?”

“Go down the way you, mmm, came and go straight at the crossroads. You’ll reach Post Town that way, hmm?”

“Got it. You hear that, Axew?” He turned his gaze onto the boy who gave him a nod and a smile in response. Hopefully, he’ll be able to do some clothes shopping while there and figure out some way to store it. It’s not like they can get a wardrobe without having a house to put it in. Maybe a large backpack? It doesn’t have to be long term. Thanks to Quagsire, they have a lead on having their house built in this barren land.

Which probably won’t stay barren for long. Axew is dead set on turning this into some kind of Paradise.

“I’ll leave you two, hmm, alone now.”

He and Axew said their goodbyes and watched as Quagsire waddled back the way he came. He ran his hand through his hair, pausing to pick out a small twig, and pulled it out of its ponytail. He didn’t care much for impressing others, but he hates being dirty. Also, it couldn’t hurt to look decent for those carpenters so they won’t just turn them away at first glance. Time to wash up the best he can before heading to the town!

“C’mon Rowan! Let’s go find a carpenter to build us a house!”

Axew was just about to gleefully run off, but he swiftly grabbed his hand to prevent that. “Not just yet,” he stated while ignoring the boy’s puzzled glance. “We both need a bit of cleaning up before we go  _ anywhere _ . C’mon now, the river over there will be plenty enough until we work something else out.”

“Eh?! But  _ Rowan _ !”

He wasn’t so easily swayed by Axew’s whine and dragged him with him towards the river.

In addition to having a cold night, they also had a cold bath. Because  _ of course,  _ they didn’t have enough cold in their life already. Yeah. He needs to figure out a way for them to bathe with  _ hot  _ water because he can’t live off of cold water. He just can’t. Even if Axew didn’t seem too bothered by the water’s temperature. Man, he wished he had the boy’s tolerance. But not his energy.

It exhausted him to watch Axew run all around the town square with gleaming red eyes. Axew had blurted out something like, “I expected it to be quiet or something, but this is awesome!” before running off. He really is a little kid. However, he has to admit that this town is pretty cool. It’s very open and outdoorsy which is new and intriguing to him. It’s nice to have room to breathe.

There’s that mainly green store next to that weird dark box that’s currently being manned by an androgynous person in green. A nice lady with furry gray ears working the shop with a lot of nicely wrapped boxes piled up. An intimidating, muscular, shirtless man with slicked back blue hair… headbutting a box open? Weird, but okay. And there’s a large establishment on the other side of the lively town square that seems to be-

“What’re you doing?!”

He swiftly snapped his gaze towards the loud, furious voice and saw a young boy wearing a dark blue jumpsuit with a hollow yellow hexagon on the front and a young girl wearing a blue ballerina-like outfit in each other’s faces. Fury burning in their gazes as they tuned out the rest of the world. He could see Axew nearby looking at them with a perplexed and saddened look.

“You just hit me on purpose, didn’t you!” The boy growled. Honestly, the way the boy worded it made it seem more like a snapped declaration than an actual question. “That hurt, you oaf!”

“All I did was brush by you! What’s the big deal?!” The young girl bristled. “Don’t go throwing a fit over every little bump!”

“Hmph!” The brown-haired boy sharply turned away from the blue-haired girl who mimicked his action and they both stormed off in opposite directions. Now  _ that  _ is a scene he’s familiar with. Arguments like that are very common in his world, especially in cities such as the one he lives in with his little brother. It’d take a miracle for someone to extend a pinch of kindness towards a stranger. He has seen his fair share of the stupidest of arguments while out in the city. Can’t do anything without having someone look at you like you just offended their great ancestors.

His gaze returned to where Axew stood and swiftly went over to him. He could see the boy lightly slouching with a dejected look on his face. “What’s wrong?” He asked with a small frown. Axew shouldn’t be looking so sad because of that display. It’s just how people are no matter if human or Pokémon.

“...I don’t like watching those kinds of arguments,” Axew muttered. “Mystery Dungeons appearing more often have got Pokémon looking out for themselves.” He stared at the boy and felt sorta bad for him. Axew is obviously the type who just wants everyone to get along even if reality proves to be different. He opened his mouth to unleash the blunt truth on the boy only for Axew to start up again with sudden determination. “That’s why I want to build a Paradise! It can be a place where everyone gets along and help each other!”

Ambitious and nearly hopeless yet he found himself cutting off his protest. Staring at Axew, seeing the fierce determination and desire to help others in his eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to try and stomp on his dream. Not even with his attended words holding some truths. “OK,” he instead said. “Wanna go check out the shops while looking for the carpenter?”

“Yeah!” Axew gasped in excitement as he eagerly looked towards the nearest shop. “I wonder what they have!” He rolled his eyes when the boy seemed to have regained his energy and ran off towards the greenish store. He looked towards the two fuming Pokémon, feeling annoyance towards them, before walking after Axew who’s firing off rapid questions at the shopkeeper.

The greenish shop turned out to be a general store run by someone named Kecleon. Fortunately, they were able to purchase a sturdy backpack from them to use as their storage. He had already placed those Oran Berries he had in it and is currently carrying it around. He had also noted how Kecleon’s hair and eyes changed the tone. Sometimes it’d be dark green and then it’d become a lighter shade. They’re just like a chameleon, especially with that curled up tail of theirs.

The next shop they scooped out belonged to the horned man who was headbutting a box open. Seemed to be his trademark with how he headbutted another box open right before their eyes with a proud smirk. The tall man, Rampardos, proudly declared himself the Box Buster’s owner as his introduction. Rowan didn’t exactly know what Treasure Boxes are in this world but he could guess that they contained valuables and are extremely difficult to open. Why else would there be a shop dedicated to, ahem,  _ headbutting  _ those things open? Hopefully, Rampardos’s shop will be open when Rowan and Axew are in need of his service.

The next shop they visited belonged to a tanned young woman who called herself Cinccino. The silver-haired woman cheerfully described her service to a very interested Axew which basically consisted of wrapping presents for others. The Gift Shop, like the Box Buster, was closed. Cinccino’s furry ears had lowered when she sadly told them that. However, she perked right back up when Axew announced that they’ll be her first customers once it’s reopened. Rowan had stared at the other boy in disbelief because they had  _ nothing  _ to wrap if you didn’t count the Oran Berries in his new backpack. Rowan swiftly said goodbye and dragged Axew away before he could make any more impulsive promises.

Rowan paused in the middle of the town square when he noticed a familiar man step off the bridge leading into that large establishment. “Oh, look, Rowan!” Axew chirped. “It’s Quagsire!” The slightly taller boy ran over to greet the plump man before Rowan could even offer up a response. He breathed out a sigh and followed after Axew at a far more casual pace.

“Hello,” he greeted the older man.

“Hmm, you two…” Quagsire smiled. “Good timing.”

The man turned towards the side and gestured towards a pair of seemingly identical twins chatting up a storm to the left of the bridge. The two girls appeared to be in their late teens and obviously fit thanks to the sleeveless pink jacket and small, dirty white crop shirts that only covered their breasts. Their jeans are the same shade of white as their sleeveless crop shirts and a pink belt holding various tools crookedly hung off of their hips. They had on pink laced-up boots and had gray wrist bands around their left wrists. They also had on pink bandanas and their thick gray hair was tied into a low ponytail thanks to a pink hairband.

They… also are strangely carrying a beam of perfectly cut wood over their shoulders.

They must be very strong to carry  _ that  _ around as if it wasn’t almost the same height as themselves.

“Those two Timburr over there are the carpenter’s, mmm, apprentices.”

“...Huh?” Rowan blinked in confusion.

“You should ask them about your house, hmm?”

That… isn’t what confused him. No, he is more confused about how Quagsire referred to the two teenagers over there. ‘Those two Timburr’ sounded…  _ off _ . He would’ve understood if he called them ‘ladies’ or something. The elder man made it sound like ‘Timburr’ is what they are. Oh, wait, Pokémon. Right. He had forgotten that there are various types of Pokémon because he has so far only met one of each type. Those Pokémon that he and Axew fought against didn’t count because they didn’t actually hold a conversation with any of them.

“Thanks, Quagsire!” Axew’s excited voice broke Rowan out of his musings. He looked towards the other boy and wasn’t surprised when he saw the twinkle in those red eyes. The black-haired boy ran off towards the two teens and unintentionally left Rowan and Quagsire in the dust.

“Sorry ‘bout that,” he shook his head. “Axew… doesn’t exactly stay in one place for too long.”

“That, mmm, energy is interesting to watch,” Quagsire chuckled.

“That’s one way to put it,” he muttered.

He said goodbye to the man before walking off to join up with Axew. By the looks of it, Axew had instantly jumped into a conversation with the teenage girls and was currently wildly gesturing with his hands. Oh boy. Rowan better hurry over in case the conversation needs any saving. They can’t mess up this chance to get someone to build them a house! Who knows when they’ll be able to meet another carpenter?

“-ings for when we have even more friends-”

“Don’t overwhelm them, Axew,” he cut in as he stopped next to Axew. “Let’s start with the basics before getting any wild ideas, alright?”

“Oh, right,” Axew sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Sorry.”

“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout it! I like his energy!” The teenager on the left shook her head with a grin. “Anyway, you want the boss to build ya a house, right?”

“Yes,” Rowan nodded. “That’s correct.”

“C’mon then. Don’t dawdle or nothin’.” The ladies exchanged swift nods before turning and walking towards the wooden bridge. Rowan watched as the two teens disappeared into the unknown establishment where their boss most likely is. So far so good. Now, how to convince this carpenter to build him and Axew a house? They don’t exactly have the funds for paying for a house’s construction.

Hmm…

“Let’s go!”

“H-Hey!” Rowan startled when Axew suddenly grabbed onto his hand. “Wait-” Axew pulled him along and after the pair. He nearly stumbled over the unexpected tug but swiftly regained his footing. He breathed out a puff of air at the other boy’s obvious eagerness to talk with this carpenter. It’s a miracle that Axew lasted this long in the world with how eager he is to go and meet a stranger. Didn’t his parents teach him anything?

Axew pulled Rowan along through the archway into the building and he took a few heartbeats to curiously survey his surroundings. Ah, so the establishment is something like a café. There are wooden stairs to their right that led somewhere though. Maybe an inn? Or, the owner of this place could live upstairs. That doesn’t seem safe since the establishment has no front door. What’s stopping people -  _ Pokémon _ from robbing this place blind?

“So where’s your boss?” Axew asked the twin girls. Rowan raised a brow at the oblivious boy and swiftly looked around the room. He could see a few people occupying some tables and apparently happily chatting away. The atmosphere here seems to be far more pleasant than the heaviness that had descended outside after that argument. Perhaps it’s because of the winged woman behind the counter? The woman has her white hair up in a bun and has on an outfit that reminds him of a ballerina, like the little girl from outside. The woman must be the owner of this place since he doesn’t see any other workers.

Then, his chocolate brown gaze rested on a tall man with a metal beam casually slung over his shoulder. The man who appears to be in his early thirties has somewhat spiky blonde hair with the front colored the same pink as the metal beam. What struck Rowan as odd is the fact that the man is wearing only a sleeveless shirt and very short shorts with pink wrappings all around his chest, arms, and thighs. And the man’s eyes reminded him of Rampardos’s eyes with how his sclera is black instead of white.

Pokémon are weird looking.

“Axew,” he pulled on Axew’s hand. “That man appears to be the carpenter.”

Axew’s mouth formed an ‘o’ as his eyes widened. “Wow,” he whispered.

“Yup! THAT’S our boss. Gurdurr.”

“Gur...durr?” Rowan quietly repeated. It sounds awfully close to Timburr. Is… Is a Gurdurr an… evolved form? He remembers his brother talking about how some Pokémon can evolve into a stronger form.

Wait…

Can he evolve too?

What Pokémon even is he?!

Rowan was forced out of his minor identity crisis when Axew made a beeline for the large, muscular man. Of course, that also meant that Axew pulled Rowan along with him without any hesitation. How strange. Usually, it was he who pulled along a little boy. Now, he’s both a little boy and being dragged around like some kind of ragdoll.

“GURDURRRRRR!!!”

Rowan jumped at the sudden shout that came from the blonde man they are approaching. It sounded so intimidating and impulsive and that threw him for a loop. He stared at the man who is now wolfing down some glistening apples with a mixture of shock and wariness swimming in his eyes. He is a bit jealous of how Axew didn’t even bat an eye at this Gurdurr’s ground-shaking roar.

“L-listen up…” One of the Timburrs nervously whispered behind them. “The boss has a bit of a vicious temper. Mind your manners.”

Rowan shot the adolescents a look before looking back towards their boss. He pressed his lips together in a thin line. A temper, huh? He’s not looking forward to the negotiation, especially since he looks like a kid now. Adults tend to disregard the statements of children no matter the situation. Getting a house built from this guy will be more difficult than he originally thought.

The four of them finally approached the table and the two gray-haired girls slid over to their boss’s side. The farthest teen nervously looked towards her partner before focusing her gray gaze on the man who apparently has a massive appetite. “Uh, boss-”

“GURDURRRRRR!!!”

The farthest Timburr didn’t even get to finish her sentence before Gurdurr’s roar cut through in interruption. Rowan noticed how the two Timburrs stood even straighter with their wood beams stiffly held over their shoulders. He didn’t like how nervous they looked to be in their boss’s presence. But… there also seemed to be some worry in their eyes? What’s that about?

Gurdurr slammed down his now empty wooden cup on the table and threw a vicious glare towards the two Timburrs. “What?! The man snapped.

“Eek!” Both Timburrs flinched back.

“What do you two want?” Gurdurr growled.

“H-hey, Boss…” One of the Timburrs gulped. “S-see, these folks here…”

Rowan decided to put Timburr out of her misery by stepping in.

“My partner and I have heard that you’re a carpenter,” Rowan spoke up. “We wish to have a house built on Axew’s newly purchased land just east of Post Town. Will you be able to help us with that?”

Rowan waited for a response. His own gaze narrowed as Gurdurr silently stared at him with hardened golden eyes. However, the man wasn’t outright telling them no so he took the silence as a good sign of Gurdurr at least considering their job request.

“Um…” Axew nervously scratched the back of his head with his free hand. “We would, of course, be paying you for your help.”

“Of course we will,” Rowan raised a brow at the other boy. “Nothing is ever done for free, Axew. Everything has a price.”

“Not everything does, Rowan,” Axew shook his head with a small frown.

“Yes, everything does have a price,” Rowan countered. “The world isn’t so kind.”

Axew continued to frown at him as if Rowan wasn’t seeing the whole picture. He didn’t like how the other boy is staring at him in sympathy. Ha! Axew doesn’t know anything about him or his experiences! He snatched his hand away from Axew’s and crossed his arms in front of him. He pointedly looked away from the other boy and focused once more on Gurdurr. “What’s your answer?” He all but hissed. His mood had become foul in the face of unwanted pity.

The man slammed the end of his metal beam on the ground and-

“GURDURRRRRR!!!”

Rowan barely managed to suppress a flinch.

“All right,” Gurdurr gave a curt nod. “I’ll do it.”

“R-really?!” Axew’s eyes gleamed in absolute happiness.

Meanwhile, Rowan just suspiciously stared at Gurdurr. There is no way that the  _ professional carpenter  _ just agreed to build them a house without discussing payment first. The man obviously isn’t some incompetent fool with how he has two apprentices. Something is up and Rowan isn’t liking it one bit.

“Yeah, really. I’m a carpenter, ain’t I? We craftsmen stick to our word.” Gurdurr picked up an apple and took a careless bite out of its flesh.

“Th-thank you!” Axew looked about ready to burst from pure happiness. Then, the black-haired boy spun towards him and excitedly grabbed onto his hands. “All right, Rowan! We’re gonna build a house!” Axew beamed.

“Uh, right,” Rowan blinked. He searched the other boy’s expression for any hint of suspicion but saw nothing except for joyfulness. Is he the only suspicious one here? It’s a damn miracle that Axew still had the funds to buy that property from Quagsire with that naivety of his.

Rowan looked back towards the Timburrs and Gurdurr with a frown. “How much will the construction be?” He questioned.

“Heh, smart kid,” Gurdurr chuckled. “I don’t need any Poké. I want you two to bring me somethin’ else instead.”

“Oh?” Rowan narrowed his eyes. “What is this something else?” Whatever it is he knows it has to be valuable to cover the cost. Or, at the very least, hard to obtain. He didn’t like either since he’d prefer the construction of their house be started as soon as possible. He wants to limit the nights spent outside as much as possible.

“There are some gems that can be found in the deepest part of a place called Stony Cave,” Gurdurr replied.

“Gems?” Axew cocked his head in puzzlement.

“Yeah, that’s right. They’re blue stones, got it?” Gurdurr stared at them until they both gave nods of acknowledgment. “We’re gonna need materials to build you that house. I’ll need those blue gems to swap for building supplies at the lumberyard.”

Huh? Gurdurr is going to swap the gems he and Axew will bring back for building supplies. He doesn’t like the sound of that. It sounds like the carpenter will be doing this out of the  _ goodness of his heart  _ and he doesn’t trust that at all.

“You’ll spot the gems if you go far enough into Stony Cave. Uh, lemme see…” Gurdurr’s brows furrowed in thought. “Yeah, about five little ones should do it, I’d say. If you go and get me some gems, I can trade ‘em for whatever you need. Then we can build you your little house.”

“All right-”

“Hold on, Axew,” Rowan interrupted. He ignored the other boy’s puzzled glance in favor of distrustfully looking at Gurdurr. “What do _ you _ get out of this?”

Gurdurr barked out a laugh. “Cautious little thing, ain’tcha? Don’t worry. The gems you and Axew get me will give me more building supplies than needed for your home’s construction. I’ll be able to use the leftovers for other jobs. Satisfied?” He gave the leaf green-haired boy a smirk. His metal beam lightly thudding against the wooden floor from how the large man is leaning against the table.

“...Fine,” Rowan eventually sighed. “We just need to find five blue gems, right?”

Rowan turned towards Axew and pulled on their still joined hands. “Let’s go.” Axew blinked at him before giving him a nod and a grin. Axew cheerfully bid the Timburrs and Gurdurr goodbye and then Rowan pulled him along and towards the building’s open entrance. He only released his grip on Axew’s hands when they stepped off the bridge and back onto the ground of the town square.

“How’d it go, hmm?” Quagsire greeted them once they stepped off the bridge. It looks like the older man was waiting for them to complete their meeting with Gurdurr. The plump man’s tail is lazily swaying behind him in addition to that carefree smile adorning Quagsire’s face. He wonders why Quagsire feels the need to check up on their progress. Is he just making sure that the new owner of that property gets off on the right foot?

“Things are looking up!” Axew gave Quagsire a wide smile. “The carpenter accepted our offer!”

“Yeah,” Rowan nodded. “We just need to gather some gems from some place called Stony Cave. Do you know how to get there, Quagsire?”

“Mmm, yup!” Quagsire gestured towards the path leading out of Post Town. “You can reach Stony Cave from the crossroads up ahead, hmm?”

How convenient.

“Great! Then we’ll be off at once!”

“Wait!” Rowan called out but it was too late. Axew had already bolted for the path leading out of Post Town. He groaned while Quagsire chuckled. “He needs to stop running off like that,” he grumbled. He ran a hand through his leaf green hair and started to walk forward only to pause at a familiar voice.

“U-umm…”

Rowan turned around and saw the twins standing next to the sign behind him. Quagsire gave the teenage girls a curious look while Rowan merely placed a hand on his hip. “Yes? What is it?” He asked. “Does Gurdurr need something else?”

The girls exchanged glances. The Timburr who had spoken worried her bottom lip while her twin shuffled her feet. His impatience started to rear its head as the long seconds ticked by with no answer from either of them.

Finally, one of the Timburrs spoke up.

“N...no. It’s nothing,” the Timburr on the left shook her head.

“Yeah, forget it…” the Timburr on the right gave Rowan a strained smile. “Just go and get those gems already.”

“That is the plan,” Rowan frowned. He stared at the Timburrs as they retreated back into the establishment. They didn’t come outside just to tell Rowan to get the gems. Something fishy is going on here and he doesn’t know what. That aggravated him since he doesn't know just what he is getting himself into. Or, what Axew is getting into.

Bah, he doesn’t even know if he can fully trust Axew and yet he’s finding himself concerned about the other boy.

What’s wrong with him?

Rowan huffed and started to march in the direction Axew ran to. Then, his steps came to yet another pause when his gaze landed on Kecleon who is in the process of selling a cape to a young woman clad in greens. He changed his direction and walked over to the general store to stand in line behind the pale-skinned woman.

With the little Poké he has left in the backpack, he should buy a map for their journey to Stony Cave before they leave.

Axew clearly isn’t reliable with directions after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is yet another chapter. Our lovely duo’s mission is to build a house! Will they succeed?
> 
> Stay in tune!

**Author's Note:**

> I told myself that I wouldn’t post this until I was completely finished with it.
> 
> Aanndd...
> 
> Only three chapters done and I’m putting this up. Good job me.


End file.
